Finally decided I just don't have the time to do a transmission swap myself these days and I really miss drivin' the ol' girl (wife wants the Mustang back too) so I went in search of a reputable transmission shop here in St. Louey. Happened upon a shop with three F-150's (various years), a 91 Bronco, and a new F-350SD in the employee parking lot. I figured I was probably headed in the right direction.

Spoke with the shop's lead technician for about half an hour. Discovered that the E4OD really is as frightening as some have discovered especially the units pre 1993-94. Turns out that the 1989 model units are unusable if they go out. Meaning that if you need to rebuild a 1989 E4OD, the ONLY way to do it is to employ all used parts. A rebuild of an 89 E4OD requires either a new case or a good used case and the old innards. Evidently the changes to the unit between the 89 and 90 model year were so significant that they rendered the 89 models all but obsolete and almost completely unique. 1990 through late 93/94 still had fluid pressure and temperature control issues and the primary upgrades to the design were improvements to the pump design for increased fluid volume inside such a large case. The effect was two-fold. Increased pump capacity which yielded greater pressure through valving and a greater flow rate to improve cooling capacity. The 93/94 upgrades also included a completely different set of solenoids to control fluid flow and shift. Obviously a necessity given the increased capacity from the new pump.

Not looking to start a big to-do over the E4OD nor am I looking to refute the longevity or capabilities of the unit because I know for all of us who have had issues with them there are many who have never had any trouble with them. I am merely pointing out some facts that I did not know until spending some time picking the brains of the people I am going to entrust with the task of repairing/replacing the E4OD in my own truck.

 

I use to have an 88' with the AOD trans and I never had a problem withit in 13 years and 300,000 miles. (lots of hard wheeling) I put two torquke converters in and I was impressed how eazy it was to pull the trans. (I dont have a trans jack.) My new (current) Bronco is a 90' with the E40D and it looks scary to pull. Its so freaking big, I doubt I can hold it up with out a jack. I've hads no problems as yet. I was told by a guy that owns a four wheel shop that the E40D is trans to have. I hope he's right.

 

i have the E4OD.....and its ok, it shifts better than a c6, and is more controlable with your foot. but im just not into the automatics. mine is original 91, with just over 130,000 on it, and i have a problem with the torque coverter not lockin up in overdrive. i wanna do a 5 speed conversion anyway, and i heard that the E4OD is really expencive to have serviced, and i WONT open it myself. if (when) i do my conversion, ill have my E4OD up for sale with all the parts, linkages, computer, harness(maybe) and any other parts that the automatic needs that the 5 speed dosnt need

 

I have a 95 Bronco with the E4OD, and did a swap last week. iT IS NOT THAT HARD AT ALL. nO HARDER THAN A C-6 OR A C4 OUT OF MY 66 MUSTANG. I had already made a flange joint for the exhaust just over the skid plate , which makes it easier to take the trans out. The E4OD is actually easier to disconnect from the vehicle bevause everything - wire harness, shift cable, just plug in. I would advise a trans jack - I got one of the 800lb fully adjustable ones from harbor freight for $79 just for this job. BTW, the trans without the transfer case weighs 300 lbs dry. I would advise pulling the transfer case off firstm as the trans will balance better on the jack, and it gives you more room to work.

I purchased a heavy duty rebuilt trans from Roadmaster Transmissions in Schaumburg, Illinois. Very fast shipping, and if you follow their instructions on cleaning the cooling system out, they will honor thier 2 year, 24k mile warranty. My first test after installing it was a trip to South Carolina the next day to pull back a 24ft enclosed trailer. The trans shifted well, and I had no problems. I found them on ebay, as well as a company in pheonix, and decided on them after they put me thru to talk to the guy who would actually build the trans for me. He answered all of my questions, amd told me to call him back directly if I had any more.

Only time will tell if it will hold up, but we are moving to Florida this month, and I plan on making 5 - 2000 mile trips hauling that 24 ft trailer with all our stuff from Virginia. What A TEST!!!

Ray

 

Never said the project was difficult. I know its a simple undertaking but it still requires time that I don't currently have.

 

It is also much easier when you have the parts truck available for the swap. The junk yard I am getting my parts from has probably paid for the parts bronco by now with all the parts I have been buying from them.

 

My 1992 F-250 Automatic OD transmission not only stopped shifting, but the speedometer went cap-put too. I can manually shift from 1st to 2nd, but ain't getting it into 3rd or OD. If I leave it in OD it's in 1st, and if I turn OD off it's in 1st. I crawled under to check the fiber gear for the speedometer to realize it's all electric. Has the tranny fried or a computer? Could the EFI sensor cause this problem? I'm just a working man that needs the truck to make a living. My local mechanic said it sounded like I bent my linkage and tore my speedometer cable, but hell the linkage is a cable and the speedometer is a wire? Any advice?

 

You need to pull the codes from the computer and see what comes back. From there it will be much easier to diagnose or at least know where the problem lies. If you need to know how, check a Haynes manual or www.fordfuelinjection.com for details on the procedure.

On a side note... A mechanic told you you had a bad speedometer cable in a 92 model Ford truck? Ok, note to self... avoid this guy. The E4OD is controlled and monitored by the EEC-IV computer and the speedometer is triggered by the VSS (Vehicle Speed Sensor) in the rear differential housing. The computer "knows" what gear the truck is in by virtue of the resistance values received from the MLPS (Manul Lever Positioning Sensor) mounted to the side of the transmission where the shift cable attaches.

Pull the codes... Let us know what they are and we can certainly point you in the right direction.

 

Thanx greystreak! I knew something was funny, but didn't know where else to go short of Cottman's or something. I had to drive the 'ol lady's Cavalier today. Will my legs ever stretch back out? I swear my butt was on the pavement. I'm gonna figure this thing out.

 

Can you tell me why the self test won't work? I connected a jumper between STI and #2 return pin, then stuck the alligator clips on my testlight to the negative terminal and stuck the ice pick into the output pin. Stepped on the accelerator turned everything electronically off and the key on. Nothing, no lights, bells or whistles.

 

Um, if you are performing the KOEO test, you need only turn the key on and the codes will flash out via the test light. On-demand codes will be first followed by a separator flash and then stored codes will flash out.

If you are performing the KOER test, you will need to do the same but actually start the truck. After the recognition code (4 flashes for a V8, 3 for a 6 cyl and 2 for a 4 cyl engine) you will need to perform the "goose" procedure - press the accelerator so the rpms climb above 2000 for at least 30 seconds if I recall correctly. Turn the overdrive OFF and back ON if you are dealing with an E4OD transmission and turn the steering wheel from lock to lock. Then, and only then, will the KOER codes come back without error codes for things that did not happen during the test. Make certain too that the A/C is NOT on during the KOER test.

 

The instruction I read said everything had to be off and for the diesel 7.3 on the KOEO test to depress the accelerator. I'm thinking the problem could be that in order to turn the overdrive off the key has to be on, so it may be cancelling the test. If I pull the fuse to the overdrive will this efect the test? Does the test plugs have a fuse anywhere that could be blown? My test light is good I know that for sure.

 

Yeah everything but the ignition. The term KOEO stands for "Key On/Engine Off". KOER stands for "Key On/Engine Running"

 

Well I am sure the EEC needs power too, is this on an ignition circuit? Where can I find a schematic?

 

The EEC computer gets its power when the key is on. Without the key ON there is no way to perform ANY of the self tests. The diagrams in the back of the Haynes manual are the only thing I ever reference when dealing with wiring on these trucks.